Page 73 of Cease and Desist

Remy opened the ladies room door and almost bumped into an elderly woman coming out. “So sorry,” she said and moved out of the way. The woman finally made it out the door and Remy entered. There was a rest area outside of the bathroom stalls that had a round seat for women to relax. Dani and Alex were seated there.

“Great job!” Alex said. “You did it! I told you you’d be a natural. You’ve got the hands for it.”

Remy collapsed onto the seat. “Oh, my god! That was nerve-wracking. Wait! Are we alone?”

The two women nodded. Dani pulled out her cell phone.

“How’s it going?” she asked as the door opened again and Lacy entered.

“Hey,” Lacy said. “We have to hurry this up. The crowd is really thinning out there, and we need to get this done before we don’t have any cover.”

“I’ve almost got it, but the iris scan isn’t working.” Dani swore.

“What do you mean it’s not working?” Lacy asked.

Dani huffed. “It’s not reading the screen.” She held up the phone that had a closeup of Najeddine’s iris on it.”

“Maybe you’re too close?” Alex suggested.

Dani moved the phone further away from the wallet reader and tried again. Nothing happened. “Shit,” Dani mumbled again. “It worked when I tested it back at the office with the identical new wallet we got for Remy.”

Remy tried to breathe. She was starting to freak out. If this didn’t work, she’d be dead. “Najeddine won’t let me live after this, regardless of if he has the key or not. He doesn’t want me around to challenge him anyway. He’d only hesitate if he thought I’d sleep with him for it. If he can get me into bed, then he’ll let me live until after we have sex. Otherwise, I’m dead at his earliest convenience.”

Lacy squeezed her arm. “We’ll figure this out.”

Remy wasn’t so sure. She watched as Dani struggled with the phone and the reader. “Did you wipe the screen?”

“What?” Dani asked.

“Well, you got prints off the glass, right? The screen probably has goo on it from the fingerprint stuff you used to transfer the print.”

“Shit,” Dani said. She wiped both the scanner on the wallet and the phone screen with the fabric of her dress. She held both. There was a click and the wallet opened.

“Thank God,” Alex mumbled.

Dani took out the key and handed it to Lacy. Then she took another identical key and put it back inside the wallet. She clicked it closed.

Lacy let out a breath. “Alex, make sure you get that to the guys so they can put it where Najeddine can find it. If he figures out he’s lost it…” her voice faded out.

Remy shuddered. “He’ll kill me. Probably stand right outside the space where the board meeting is supposed to take place and kill me the moment I try to enter.”

Lacy touched her friend’s shoulder. “Let’s just say it’s better he gets the fake and thinks he can claim the seat on the board until you can claim it with the real key, Remy.”

Alex nodded. “Got it.” She smiled at Remy. “Good luck.” Then she was gone.

Lacy put the key into another wallet. “I’ll keep it until we get you to wherever the meeting is.” She raised her voice. “Which is where?” She was asking the guys.

“Upstairs. Take the stairwell to the right of the bathroom. At the top of the stairs, turn left and then right. Then go to the far end. It’s the last door on the left,” Gage said. “Best hurry.”

Remy stood but then promptly fell back down on the seat. Her knees didn’t want to hold her.

Dani squeezed Remy’s bicep. “You can do this. You just successfully pickpocketed a guy who was expecting it, all the while keeping him amused and scanning the room for trouble. You’ve got this.”

“She’s right.” Lacy helped her up. “You do have this.” She gave Remy a hug. “I’ll be ahead of you. The guys will be in the hallway to help if you need it. I’ll meet you at the door.”

She nodded.

Dani stood. “How do I look?” she smiled. She was wearing the same dress as Remy, and she had a matching wig. If someone didn’t look closely, they would never know it wasn’t Remy, which was the whole point.

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